Chris O’Neill

Dr. Christopher M.
O’Neill is a Managing Director, Chief Investment Officer & Director of Research at Mesirow Financial Investment Management, Inc. He has more than 25 years of experience in financial and scientific research and expertise in quantitative investment manager selection, Monte Carlo simulation, and quantitative finance.
In addition to managing the Investment Strategies research team, he is responsible for developing innovative manager selection and portfolio construction methodologies, as well as a retirement income framework that optimizes both product and asset allocation for traditional investment products and advanced retirement income products.
Prior to joining Mesirow Financial in 2006, Mr. O’Neill was a research consultant at Ibbotson Associates, where he applied quantitative analysis and product development experience to support the efforts of the Investment Management Services, Fund of Funds and Financial Communications groups.
Before that, he was president and founder of Quantalent Investment Consulting, LLC, an independent Registered Investment Advisor, where he offered quantitative investment advice and methodologies to other financial advisors.
Before founding Quantalent Investment Consulting, Mr. O’Neill spent five years dedicated to financial planning, which culminated in a senior product management role developing an online investment advice tool for a major mutual fund company.
He earned an AB in Physics (magna cum laude) from Princeton University and an MS and a PhD in Theoretical Physics from Cornell University.
He is a CFA® charterholder, a Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) Professional, and holds Financial Risk Manager (FRM®) and Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC®) designations.